September 2, 1945, marked the end of World War II. The date is now known as V-J Day, “Victory over Japan.”
Seventy-nine years ago, cities across the nation celebrated the return of their war heroes and honored the lives of those who did not return. They held parades and parties and were finally able to embrace their loved ones following six years of war.
It wasn’t until February of 1946 that Alabama native and now legendary Marine war veteran Eugene “Sledgehammer” Sledge could return home.
Sledge, also known as E.B. Sledge, experienced the unimaginable during the campaigns of Peleliu and Okinawa. Thankfully, he had the wherewithal to jot down those experiences and keep them for safekeeping in the New Testament Bible he kept with him during deployment. Those horrific and heroic experiences were immortalized in his 1981 memoir, “With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa.”
Although he passed away from stomach cancer in 2001, one of his sons, Henry Sledge, has continued to speak about his father and keep his legacy alive. He is now working on a book of his own, and he spoke to 1819 News about his father’s life.
Born on November 4, 1923, in Mobile, Eugene Sledge was raised in a strict household. His father was a physician who taught him how to shoot guns and challenged him to think logically.
After fighting illnesses as a child, he was left with a heart murmur caused by rheumatic fever. Still, as a student of the Marion Military Institute, he could hardly wait to join the war after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
He had the opportunity to enlist, but his parents begged him to sign up for an officer training program first. As part of the program, he had to go to Georgia Tech, but he and his classmates feared that if they finished the program, the war would be over by the time they were commissioned. So, they purposefully flunked out of the program. Sledge joined the U.S. Marines as an enlisted man in December 1943.
“He actually graduated from boot camp Christmas Eve of 43,” Henry Sledge said.
Less than three months later, he was training on Pavuvu in the Solomon Islands.
Private First Class Sledge, also known as “Sledgehammer,” served with Company K, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division as a 60 mm mortarman.
In September of 1944, Sledge’s unit was sent into a fierce battle with the Japanese in Peleliu, where he was faced with the shocking reality of war.
For a month, Sledge took part in one of the bloodiest battles in the Pacific.
In his book, Eugene Sledge details the first time he was close enough to see the face of a Japanese soldier that he killed. His son explains the way he wrote those moments, which reveals Sledge had a heart and an appreciation even when he was in war mode.
“He just empties his clip into the guy's chest, and he writes so beautifully and so powerfully about seeing, as soon as his bullets started impacting the guy's chest, he said, the guy's knees buckle, and he just sees this look of agony on the man's face,” Henry Sledge explained. “And he writes so powerfully about how that made him feel and as much as he hated his enemy, it still disgusted him.”
While the battle in Peleliu was terrifying for the young Marine, it prepared him for Okinawa, where he once said he was still scared but no longer panicked. Through it all, Sledge maintained his humanity and love for his country.
“I think that he was scared,” Henry Sledge said. “But I think there was this huge groundswell of patriotism in this country, which I don't think we can even connect with in this day and age.”
“But back then, there was a feeling of that we had been invaded by the Japanese in the attack at Pearl Harbor and it was a sneak attack,” he said. “I think there was this feeling of enraged bitterness that our country had been attacked, and you had millions of young people who wanted to serve their country, and they wanted to fight back.”
Sledge was not physically wounded in the war. However, he often spoke of the mental and emotional impact of such mind-numbing and bloody battles. He wrote in great detail about his experiences in what many call one of the best and most realistic accounts of World War II. HBO produced “The Pacific” series, which documents the horror those on the frontlines faced. Sledge also wrote the book, “China Marine,” about his time after the war was over.
Sledge returned to Alabama several months after the war and was greeted by his parents and the family dog.
“I remember him telling me when he got back to my grandparents' house and he walked in the front door, one of their dogs was like 10 feet away, sitting in the front hallway,” Henry Sledge said. “When my dad opened up the door, their dog literally ran and jumped into his arms.”
“Because he'd been gone for three-plus years, my dad told me how he was immediately struck by how old and how much my grandmother and my grandfather had aged in the years he had been gone.”
Although he was home, Sledge struggled to understand and relate to civilian life. Sledge said after he returned to Alabama, the streets of Mobile seemed strange. As he walked among the hustle and bustle, it seemed people didn’t realize how blessed they were to live in a free country. The simple, most beautiful things were overlooked by many.
He once said when he was registering for class, he was asked if the Marine Corps had taught him anything useful. He reportedly said, “Lady, there was a killing war. The Marine Corps taught me how to kill Japs and try to survive. Now, if that don't fit into any academic course, I'm sorry. But some of us had to do the killing—and most of my buddies got killed or wounded.”
Sledge earned a degree in business administration from Auburn University and went on to try a career in real estate and then insurance. He knew he had a love for nature, so his paper-pushing job was not for him. He decided to return to school, and he received his master's degree in botany. He didn’t stop there. Sledge attended the University of Florida, where he earned his Ph. D. in Zoology.
Eventually, Sledge became a professor of biology at the University of Montevallo.
Over the years, Sledge’s legacy has been honored in numerous ways, some close to home and some very far away. The Eugene B. Sledge Veterans Story Collection was established at American Village in Montevallo.
Back on the island of Peleliu, the landing strip where Sledge and his comrades crossed during the war was recently named “Sledge” runway.
Sledge and his unit captured the airfield and crossed it during tense fighting in the Battle of Peleliu. Henry Sledge said that although that was 80 years ago, the airstrip has been revitalized for the Marine Corps. If not for the seizure of the airfield in 1944, that would not be possible now.
“You have these bases across the Pacific that are being revitalized to serve as a strategic bastion against a potential threat from the Chinese,” Sledge revealed. “In the process of doing that, the airfield on Peleliu was deemed to be necessary and the Marine Corps are using it for C-130 supertankers, KC-130 supertankers, and probably other stuff.”
“But it is strategically relevant to prepare ourselves against a potential authority against the Chinese in the years to come,” he added.
Now, the W Britain Company is in the process of producing the Eugene Sledge figurine.
Every child thinks their dad is a hero at some point. For Henry Sledge, that is no different.
“My dad was a 60 mm mortarman. He was a Marine who did his job,” Henry Sledge told 1819 News. “As I got older and I met some of the guys he served with and spoke to them about what they experienced and what they remembered about fighting alongside my dad, he was, in their words, a damn good Marine.”
“He never questioned an order,” he continued. “He did his job and did it effectively. He was a hero to me personally because he was my dad. I don't want to elevate because he was never decorated for bravery.”
“He never got a Medal of Honor or a Bronze Star or a Silver Star or anything like that,” he continued. “There were times he certainly could have and I know that from researching. But I felt an enormous sense of pride from a very early age in his service as a Marine in World War II.”
Henry Sledge also says the real heroes are those who gave their lives, and he does not want to diminish their sacrifices.
Eugene “Sledgehammer” Sledge is now buried in the Pine Crest Cemetery in Mobile.
“AUTHOR
WITH THE OLD BREED
CHINA MARINE,” his grave ledger reads.
His own words are inscribed, “Combat leaves an indelible mark,” the ledger reads. “The only redeeming factors were my comrades’ incredible bravery and their devotion to each other. That espirit de corps sustained us. WTOB [With the Old Breed].”
The ledger also reads, “And when he gets to Heaven to St. Peter he will tell another Marine, ‘Reporting, Sir. I’ve served my time in Hell.’ – Anonymous”
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email erica.thomas@1819news.com.
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